NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

OK GANG....B-Day Present arrived on my B-Day Weekend ..... Couldn't ask for a better B-day gift than a NEW TANK!!!! :D
Did I mention I LUV my Wife :).....Oh yes and the Inlaws bought me the Battle Unit ;) SWEET!!!
SO here is what you get... One GOrgeous Box of goodies...YOu know the inner Flap on all the Tamiya Full FUNCTION Tanks are GREAT Picturesque Scenes that make Excellent Wall Decor...[8D]

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

Ok now...check out all the nice details and great packaging provided for you to get you EXCITED ABOUT putting together this Little Working Marvel.... Just as a note:
The US ARMY M4 SHERMAN 105mm HOWITZER Tank production began in July 1942 ... about five months later than the cast hulled M4A1...A total of approx 50,000 SHERMAN TANK Variant were produced...It was produced in such large numbers and sent into action to finally help over throw the AXIS!! General George S. Patton said"In mechanical Endurance and ease of maintenance our tanks are infinitely superior to any other"..This little tank provided our Troops the reliable Tank that helped U.S. win the war!!!

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

More great details...Check out the QUALITY parts like the metal/aluminum lower hull and great cast wheels/sprockets and also the preassembled tracks... also note the quantity of parts in the last picture...whew...better get some rest// THis could take a little while..
I will be adding markings to my SHERMAN like those of the SHERMAN in the Texas Armor Museum ...IT is called "ACES HIGH".. has a ACE of SPades card on both sides of the Hull... and says ACES HIGH...pretty cool... I will try to post pics of it next visit to the museum...

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

Total of all parts to be Harvested from the sprues and assembled..Oh and Painted and assembled... [8D]

Sorry about the blurred pics ..Hope these came out better...I am NOT for HIRE to do any weddings so please don't ask..I reserve my Photography skills and state of the art camera for TANKS hehehehee:D

So let theAssembly, Priming and painting begin!!!!!!!!!

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

Oooops....Found out that when I opened the rectangular box it contained TONS of extra Parts I must use to complete this SHERMAN....OK breathe... Wow those are tiny screws....oh...I dropped one...Nobody MOVE:D:D:D
So I am Priming the metal Parts that are needed for the lower suspension and hull...There are MORE parts that I will prime and paint once the subassemblies are completed... For now here is the hull, sprockets, Suspension Arm, Idler wheels, and more.. "txtanker" recommended this Plasticote Finish primer for all metal parts and I have used it on my last 2 Tanks and it worked great....and it has been a very reliable product and also sprays on in a Fine mist and is relatively inexpensive at $6.00 a large spray can vs. Tamiya's small little rattle cans that are almost that much for 1/3 the product...

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

more parts getting Primed.Note I used lots of tape to MASK off areas that SHOULD NOT get primed or painted...this will ENSURE a good fit of screws, bearings and the like..Nice detail on those metal parts ..ey??..Tomorrow I will be starting the Suspension and lower hull ...I will be trying the Rustoleum/Krylon OD Spray Paint on this Project... PCD1964, TXTANKER and COL_SABOT have all used it and say it is fast drying, goes on easy and is durable...Best of all it is 1/2 the cost of Tamiya Paint... Now I like the Tamiya spray paint but YES it is expensive for what you get,,, But that is my humble opinion... Relatively speaking it is not when these are $600 Tanks...but it is nice to save if you can without sacrificing quality...;)

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

Ok got the rest of these parts Primed....and I started painting the hull inside and out to give it that finished look...Here is the Rustoleum Camo FLAT Olive Drab Paint that is available at most WALMART and Home Depot Stores...hey what is that thing in front of the Rustoleum can......hmmmmmmmm

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

OK GANG....Here are lots of parts After getting coats of FLAT OLIVE DRAB Paint applied...Lots of Sprues...It is easier to paint these on the sprues before assembly then once assembled you may touch up the areas that need it...gives a better look than painting after assembly.. Just my opinion..I did the opposite on my KingTiger as I made several subassemblies then painted those parts and then assembled everything...Not bad ,,,but on my Pershing I painted the pieces ON the Sprues ,Then assembled everything as I am doing on this SHERMAN and it went MUCH smoother.... so here are the parts on the SPRUES and also the Turret, upper Hull and assemblies...

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

nemesis4u
you are sure a fast builder. what glue do you use?

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

I only use AMROID PROWELD and CA where needed...
AMROID PROWELD actually melts the plastic together...thus welding it..makes joints look great and clean..uses capillary action to work its way into tight spaces... I was introduced to this by txtanker in November 2004 when I got into R/C Tanks.... I have only been assembling r/c tanks since December so I am quite a new at this..I previously and currently fly and assemble/build/CRASH:D R/C Planes...
I like tanks b/c you can operate them anywhere regardless of WIND, weather ( go inside), and friends can join in with your "toys" without Great Fear that it will Crash into a zillion pieces and you lose all your time , money and toys in a second due to pilot error...
So anyhow...I hope to get better at building these tanks and painting..Painting is my weakness...as well as soldering.... I am trying...hmmm now how do I get my fingers unglued...got CA all over them.....:D:D:D:D:D

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

I asked because I saw yo paint the parts first like the instruction write. but if you use regular plastic cement, you will end up all part not glue together because of the paint will prevent the cement work. CA is ok. but will whiten the joint area.

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

Nice..That is why the PROWELD is sooooNice....no white spots...and welded parts[8D]
More updates tonite...I am off to work...[&o]

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

Lets see some more of that Sherman build... I cant wait to get mine and go at it....

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

I have been quite busy at work so I did not make much Progress until this weekend... Here is where we left off..
Collected all the parts needed to attach the Idler Wheels,Love those real rubber road wheels... and return roller assembly..Attached the Suspension Support arms..Make SURE TO USE THREADLOCK!!!!!!!![8D] Look at all those tiny screws....Dont wanna lose those..

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

Next we assemble the roller wheels with bushings,shafts,axles,caps Total of 78 pieces in this step alone...but who's counting all those parts and pieces...hehehe Make sure to use lots of grease so the wheels will roll smoothly... Again using Threadlock on inner Nuts...:)Looking Good....

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

I posted questions at www.texasarmor.com under 1/16 Tamiya Armor and gathered information that concluded in that Bearings instead of Bushings would be best in my application as I intend to Run it in various terrains and quite honestly be quite brutal with it as I am with my other 1/16 Tamiya Tanks..SO I ordered a set of Sealed Bearings...should be here in 7-10 business days..SO I am skipping ahead onto another section of the Sherman so I can make as much progress as possible...
Next I mounted the 2 New style Gear boxes to the lower hull..I followed the instructions and installed the spacer bolts/nuts and properly attached everything to the fwd portion of the Hull..again I used threadlock...

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

Next..I installed the Side Plates and cross bar which gives all the gearboxes and front hull additional support and rigidity...Lastly I installed the front of the lower hull ...Starting to look like a Tank Hull...[>:]

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

So to the REAR of the Sherman...gotta give her rear some attention...:D:D:D
Installing the rear Air Cleaners, Mufflers, hatch/doors, etc...that antenna mount will most probably be deleted..kinda ugly..[:@]

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

Moving onto the UpperHull for now...I cut out the "sprue supports" in the center of the turret hole and sanded it smooth...
I assembled the rollers and turret rotation mechanism into the interior of the upper hull

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

Last update for the nite...it is 1 am and I need some ZZZZZZZZZZZZZ's[:-][:-][:-];)[8D]
First picture you have the lighting harness for the rear and front lights on the Sherman..Nice and bright [8D] These wires are run inside the upper hull ...
Next, I gathered the parts for the machine gun and the LED that goes with it...Nice metal aircooled machine gun assembly...I Assembled and installed it in the Upper Hull..Note the small black wires and clear bulb poking out of the Hull..That is where one of the Headlamps will be...There are 2 operational headlamps and 2 operational brake/tail lamps...One may turn them on and off from your 4 channel transmitter...really cool effects...I have this on my Tamiya Pershing and makes driving the tank in dark/dim areas lots of fun...
More to come...Hang on.....:);)

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

Looking good!!! Nice call on the bearings.. I have a thing about bearings that I always replace the bushings even if it really don't matter. Might as well do it right the first time is the way I look at it. sometimes you get hold of one of those odd sized bushings and cant find a bearing for I have always had good luck with [link=http://www.bocabearings.com/]Boca Bearings[/link] when trying to locate any odd size bearings. Any way keep the pictures comming cant wait to see a finished product.

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

So, Today I assembled the headlamps, tail lamps and added the details to the front and rear of the hull...I will show those pictures later.. Next I started the assembly on the Turret...First we mount the Gun elevation unit and gear to the support platform/turret rotation base ...

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

Next inside the turret we add the Receiver base and wiring for the Battle UNIT as well as the main gun elevation base with the metal elevation arm...note the neatly bundled wiring for the Battle Unit.. Then I add the mantlet and 105mm Howitzer....Be careful when gluing that it does not become glued in one position...use glue carefully!!!!!
Note how quickly the Turret will become packed with gear in the next set of pictures...

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

Then I installed the LED for the transmitter of the Battle Unit AND THE Flash Unit INSIDE the 105mm Howitzer barrel (pcd1964's clever idea as he did on his SHerman) and then zip tied it to the elevation arm as normal to keep it from tangling on the gear..then using double sided tape neatly attached the flash unit to the rear of the turret...
After this I followed the instructions to attach the lower turret assembly to the upper turret and neatly organize and exit the bundles of wiring out the center of the turret..;)

RE: NEMESIS4U's SHERMAN FULL FUNCTION BUILD
 

Sorry about that LARGE picture of the Flash Unit and BAttle Unit LED...dont know how that happened..here are the other pictures I intended to show above..THESE show the Turret being glued together...The turret appears a bit dull without many details at this point..I will be adding many details in the next picture set...